Like Pigs In...Erm...Frost!
We’ve been on to Jimmy Butler from Blythburgh Pork at St Margaret’s Farm in Suffolk this week to check on how the pigs are getting along at this coldest time of year. Short days and freezing temperatures are tough for us all. Jimmy says that it’s still a good time to bring pigs along in winter (as well as in the spring and autumn), you just need to manage it differently.
We caught up with Jimmy just as him and his team had been carting water around to the pigs as some of the pipes had frozen up. The pigs are also given extra feed at this time of year to help keep their body temperature up. Those sea views across the Suffolk fields can get a bit chilly! Due to rain and cold the farm gets through twice as much straw as it does during the other seasons in the year and he highlighted how important it was to give the pigs plenty of dry, warm bedding.
Apart from all the seasonal adjustments it’s business as usual down on St Margaret’s Farm, the priority always being the welfare of the pigs. I’m sure they’re keeping warmer than even Jimmy at this time of year! It’s worth the sacrifice though, as the pork produced is always excellent.
